In the eight months since then, they’ve experienced early successes and promising growth.

“We are working towards a NLG chapter on every campus in the nation,” said Kynat Akram, Advocacy Director of NLG GW. “On behalf of Syrian refugees, we have and will continue providing man hours and continue to raise funds for our partners like the UNHCR (the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees).”

The bulk of NLG efforts lies in advocacy: They hold events and conferences to raise awareness of the plight of refugees. They also contribute to projects and partners that are refugee-focused. NLG GW often contributes to the Rumie Initiative, a cloud-based education database that is made available to Syrian refugees.

In the spring, NLG GW hosted their first Student Leadership Conference, which connected students with public and private refugee aid organizations and promoted productive dialogue about specific issues plaguing Syria’s refugees.

“I think it really opened our eyes how the work we do will affect kids. We visited a culture center in the area and met elementary-age refugee children who will later on will become the doctors, engineers and teachers that Syria will need to rebuild. These kids had seen some of the worst violence so visiting this center was a humbling moment for all of us,” said Akram.

Since its founding, No Lost Generation has spread to other universities, such as the University of Maryland and the University of Delaware — and is actively trying to expand in size and scope as the next school year approaches.

“We’re currently in talks with around 60 universities, all at different stages. More chapters will be opening up this coming fall and spring,” said Grant Smith, the outreach director for NLG GW. “While we’re currently very focused on Syrian refugee crisis, we’re looking to expand to advocating for all refugees — like those in Africa and other regions.”

“These children will have the power to rebuild Syria from nothing if they are educated,” said Akram. “The 2016 race and the refugee topic has motivated us to work harder because we’ve seen the impact that the crisis and our work has had on the ground.”

Julia Arciga is a student at George Washington University and a USA TODAY College correspondent.